“During the Cuban Revolution, some of the dogs were brought to this country by their owners who migrated to Southern Florida, while others migrated to Costa Rica and Puerto Rico with their dogs, thereby preserving the breed.”
An 1860 engraving from France show- ing the Petit Chien Havane (Little Dog of Havana).
Poulka de Dieghem, a chestnut brown bitch, was exhibited at the Tuileries in Paris in 1907. Leighton describes her as a Havana Spaniel. 1 1 Leighton, Robert. The New Book of the Dog. London: Cassell. 1907. Page 539
The Havanese was recognized by the American Kennel Club in 1996, and a total of 1,307 HCA registered Ha- vanese were granted AKC registra- tion. As so often happens when AKC recognizes a new breed, the popularity of the breed has exploded since recog- nition. When Havanese began show- ing for championships in January of 1999, they were virtually unknown by breeders of other breeds of dogs. After a few months, the Havanese was being noticed by other breeder—a lot of other breeders. Breeders of larger breeds who were thinking of downsiz- ing to a smaller breed were especially
the Havanese were dubbed “The Fly- ing Furballs.” There are several OTCH (Obedience Trial Champion) and MACH (Master Agility Champion) titled Havanese, with others working toward those titles. With their joyful attitude, they do well in every venue. They excel in Therapy work where their small size, loving disposition and happy attitude make them favorites. Numerous Havanese have earned the AKC Therapy Dog title. The future of the Havanese is bright, with demand for the breed as both pets and show dogs continuing to be strong.
noticing them. According to the AKC Registration Statistics, in 1999 a total of 626 individual dogs were registered with AKC. In 2001 the Havanese was ranked 75th of 146 breeds. In 2011, Havanese were ranked 32nd of 173 breeds with 4,466 dogs registered that year. Havanese have become popular as competitors in companion events. They train easily and are willing per- formers. Many now compete in Obe- dience, Rally and Agility, and also participate in Tracking Trials, Flyball competition, and Musical Freestyle dance. Early on in Agility competition,
ABOUT THE AUTHOR In the early 1960s, Natalie Armitage enrolled her mixed-breed family dog in Obedience school and joined the Obedience club. Subsequently, she trained a Labrador Retriever that belonged to a member of the Obedience club, and put a CD title on her while she was in high school. In 1967, Natalie bought a Cairn Terrier to show in Conformation. For over 25 years, she showed and bred Cairn Terriers, producing several champions in that breed. She continued in Obedience also, and earned titles on other dogs. Two of her Cairns participated in American Working Terrier Association Earthdog tests and had Earthdog titles.
Natalie became interested in Havanese in 1995. She purchased her first Havanese from Lynn Ni- eto, and that dog finished her HCA Championship and Rare Breed Championships as a puppy. In January 1999, Ch. Los Perritos Overlook Salsa ROM became the first Havanese bitch to finish an AKC championship. Although she rarely has puppies, Natalie has bred over 19 puppies. She has also finished championships on several Havanese bred by other people. A member of the Havanese Club of America since 1997, Natalie has served on a number of committees over the years. She was the Corresponding Secretary of HCA, Chair of the Standard Committee, and a member of the Awards Committee. As Chair- man of the Standard Committee, she was given the responsibility of forming a committee to produce the new Judges Education presentation. This is currently being used for Judges Education presentations.
30 • T op N otch T oys , N ovember 2022
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